The One Room Schoolhouse

A novel evidence-informed, community-based academic half-day curriculum format developed at the Waterloo Regional Campus in the postgraduate psychiatry program within the McMaster Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences.  

The One Room Schoolhouse curriculum brings together residents across all years of postgraduate training into a four-week module which involves case-based learning integrated with EBM sessions, simulation, and clinical skills teaching. Module topics are developed in collaboration between residents, community stakeholders and faculty, intended to tackle emerging issues in our field (i.e., MAID in mental illness, physician wellness, emerging changes in mental health law) and to be clinically reflective of the community in which the residents practice. Rather than using a typical facilitator or content expert, each module is guided by a Faculty Learner, who models life-long learning by setting and researching their own independent learning objectives alongside the residents.  

This curriculum has been developed and coordinated by Dr. Robyn Fallen and Dr. Ben McCutchen, both assistant clinical professors at the Waterloo Regional Campus. The early development of the One Room Schoolhouse benefited from the mentorship of former psychiatry program director and associate professor Dr. Sheila Harms. The curriculum continues to benefit from the active involvement of residents as well as the encouragement and support of the McMaster Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences and Waterloo Regional Campus. 

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Do you know of an outstanding education innovation that deserves recognition? 

MERIT invites you to submit nominations for our Education Innovations Profile! 

This new segment will be featured in our monthly newsletter to spotlight educational initiatives in the Faculty of Health Sciences.  
 

Here's what we need:

• A concise 100-word description of the innovation.
• 1-3 hyperlinks to relevant websites and/or publications. 
• Names and positions of the key team members behind this innovation. 
• An image is encouraged but not necessary. 

Don't miss this opportunity to share your or someone else's remarkable work with our community! 

Submit your nominations to merit@mcmaster.ca

Submissions accepted on a rolling basis.

MERIT is excited to welcome Dr. Cheryl Poth as the inaugural MERIT Visiting Professor! Dr. Poth will be joining us during the first week of November, and with that will bring mixed methods expertise. Dr. Poth will give the MERIT Rounds on the evening of November 7. 

Cheryl Poth, Ph.D. is a Professor and award-winning instructor in the Centre for Research and Applied Measurement and Evaluation at the University of Alberta, Edmonton. In this role, she has developed and teaches graduate courses in research design and mixed methods research. She was a founding board member of the Mixed Methods International Research Association and served as its fourth President in 2018/19. Her specific research interests include enhancing mixed methods research and teaching quality and collaborative research teams in the fields of education and the health sciences. Dr. Poth has an adjunct appointment in the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry and serves as the methodologist on several cross-disciplinary research teams. She has published health-related studies in many high impact practitioner and scholarly outlets including the Journal of Mixed Methods Research, BMC Health Service, Academic Medicine, and Medical Teacher. 

The MERIT visiting professorship invites prominent scholars with expertise relevant to health professions education to engage in a part-time, year-long, residency at MERIT. The goal of the visiting professorship is to build a particular knowledge base, skill set or capacity in the MERIT scientists and community.

MERIT is pleased to welcome Priyanka Bajaj as the newest Research Assistant! 

Priyanka has 5 years of experience working in public health. She has expertise in data analysis, data collection, and literature reviews. Her achievements include managing and analyzing extensive data sets for climate change and human health research, as well as evaluating secondary care hospitals. She has completed an MBA Health Management and a Bachelor’s in Ayurvedic Medicines from India.

Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada 

Medical Education Research Grant 

Defining the Key Abilities Required to Perform in Challenging Pediatrics Procedures